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Blind/vision impaired Digital Technology & Online Media news

The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) was held last week in Las Vegas, revealing a number of interesting new products that are likely to turn up in our stores in the months to come. Here are some of the main themes this year and their accessibility implications.

The video sharing website Vimeo has introduced several new features, including support for closed captions and foreign language subtitles on its video player.

Until now, YouTube was the only social video sharing service which allowed videos to be made accessible to Deaf and hearing impaired viewers. As reported by the Drum, with this added function, Vimeo will be more competitive and viewers will have access to a larger amount of content.

A new app for Android smartphones has been released to help Perth residents who are blind or vision impaired get around on buses.

Stop Announcer (Perth) provides audio information for buses and other public transport around Perth, Western Australia. Users select their route number and stop, and the app counts down the number of stops and alerts the user when their stop is approaching. The app is designed specifically for people who are blind or have low vision, so it is completely screen reader accessible with a high contrast visual design.

The Australian Government has released its progress report on the National Transition Strategy (NTS) – its schedule to make its websites conform to international accessibility standards. The report signals a change in the Government’s approach that could affect the timeframe for when people with disability are given equal access to government information and services.

First put in place in 2010, the NTS stated that all government websites must comply with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 level A by the end of 2012 and level AA by the end of 2014. Now, the Australian Government Information Management Office (AGIMO) has said that this timeframe was unrealistic.

Chief Information Officer Glenn Archer said that “It is clear that some websites and some web applications will not meet the ambitious 2014 timeframe for WCAG 2.0 level AA conformance”, and that a framework will be put in place for continuous accessibility improvement next year.

Each week, we help produce a segment for Vision Australia Radio. Presented by community broadcasting legend Roberta Ashby, these offer a special opportunity to share developments in technology with people who don’t necessarily spend a lot of time online. Here, we share some of the favourites broadcast in the past year.